1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an input protection circuit for MOS devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an ordinary MOS device, the gate thereof is isolated from the remaining portion thereof by a gate oxide film (SiO.sub.2 film) which forms the dielectric layer between the gate and substrate. Since the gate oxide film is very thin, it may be destroyed in the same manner as other dielectric materials if an excessively high voltage is applied to the gate. As a result, the gate and substrate may be short-circuited and the device will be destroyed permanently. Therefore, special care must be taken so as not to accidentally apply excessive charges to the gate.
FIG. 2 shows an input protection circuit serving as a protection device for the conventional MOS device. Input pad 1 is connected to one end of resistor (R) 2 formed of a diffusion layer or polysilicon layer and the other end of the resistor is connected to the emitter of parasitic bipolar transistor 3. The collector and base of parasitic bipolar transistor 3 are respectively connected to power source terminal Vss (ground potential) and power source terminal VBB (substrate potential). The other end of resistor 2 is connected to the gate in input buffer circuit 4. In FIG. 2, 5 denotes a parasitic capacitance, (C).
The conventional circuit of the above construction may be insufficient in its ability to protect the gate oxide film of the MOS device from being damaged by static charges or a voltage which is accidentally applied to the gate. For example, in FIG. 2, resistor 2 is formed near input pad 1 and the wiring distance between resistor 2 and input buffer circuit 4 is long. Accordingly, the capacitance of parasitic capacitor (C) 5 is large, therefore the resistance of resistor (R) 2 cannot be large from the viewpoint of wave formation (that is, the waveform will become deformed due to RC). As a result, it is necessary to increase the pattern size of parasitic bipolar transistor 3.
As described above, in order to enhance the ability to protect the gate oxide film of the MOS device from being damaged by static charges or a voltage which is accidentally applied to the gate, it is necessary to increase the pattern size of the parasitic bipolar transistor.